Sesshomaru meets his match
by Sesshugal
Summary: Inuyasha and his gang had found happiness after Naraku's demise. Sesshomaru was contend but was he happy? Doesn't he need a soul-mate to complete him? But the path to true love is never easy to traverse. Guys, this is my first story.... So pls review:
1. Chapter 1

**Sesshomaru meets his match**

_**by **_

**Sesshugal**

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

Chapter 1: Prologue

The battle with Naraku was over. Three years after the bone eater's well was sealed, Kagome and Inuyasha's love caused the spell to be broken and Kagome returned to the feudal era for good. In the meantime, Miroku and Sango had been busy raising a family. They now had twin daughters and a new born son. Kagome was busy learning all duties of a priestess so that she could settle into her new life here. Sesshomaru left Rin in lady Kaedae's care to help her learn to adapt to human life. He visited her often and gave her presents every time he came to visit her.

Although, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru were not exactly the best of friends, a fragile bond was forming between the brothers though neither would ever be caught admitting it. Inuyasha in particular, was found to be subconsciously emulating his older half-brother. His speech was more mature and he was no longer loud and brash. Kagome was delighted at this change in Inuyasha. Now that Naraku was gone, the hanyou and his miko were free to pursue their relationship and Inuyasha was courting Kagome with ardent fervour in his own style. He would bring her a rare blossom from the ---- mountain which would bloom only once in 15 years or a pretty pebble polished to shining perfection by a stream. Kagome adored everything her Inuyasha brought her although she wished he would tell her that he loved her too. But Inuyasha being Inuyasha was too shy to make such a move and lay his feelings bare for all to see.

The only member of this delightful group without a mate (excluding the children Kohaku, Shippo and Rin of course) was Sesshomaru. The powerful inuyokai, the Lord of the West had yet to be caught in the pangs of amour. Oh! What sort of female would capture the interest of the masterful and seemingly cold Sesshomaru? Fate had an answer to that.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Rin's day out

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

Rin was in an impatient mood today. Sesshomaru-sama had promised to take her fishing today as a reward for learning to read and write under Kaedae's tutelage. She was excited about this trip as it had been a long time since she got to spend some time with Sesshomaru-sama, Jaken and Ah-Un. Today was going to be so much fun. She wore a pink kimono that Sesshomaru had bought for her during his previous visit. Kagome and Sango smiled at each other as they watched Rin skipping around. Shippo was disappointed that Rin was going to have fun without him and was sulking; but then his relationship with Jaken was nothing short of volatile.

Sesshomaru arrived as usual in a flash of light when anyone would least expect it. Inuyasha growled low in his throat; this was his usual way of greeting Sesshomaru to which Sesshomaru responded with his characteristic "Hn". Kagome and Sango repressed their giggles on seeing the scowling Inuyasha while Miroku stepped in to play the role of a mediator in case the brothers started to trade insults.

Rin ran to Sesshomaru crying out "Sesshomaru-sama you have come!" Sesshomaru smiled one of his rare smiles (which seemed to be exclusively reserved for Rin). The sight of his smile brought a sigh from Sango and Kagome for although the girls had given their hearts to their chosen partners, the sight of a smiling Sesshomaru could cause a flutter in the heart of even a 90-year old grandmother let alone two young girls. This earned a fierce scowl from Miroku and Inuyasha who had not missed the response of their girls, though the girls did not pay heed to them (talk about adding insult to injury!). However, Sesshomaru was unaffected by all of this and without wasting any time, hoisted his ward onto Ah-Un and prepared to set out on their journey. Rin saw Shippo sulking by the bushes and called out to him. "Sesshomaru-sama, Shippo is Rin's playmate. Can he come with us today? Pleaseeee pleeeeease Sesshomaru-sama, please let Shippo come too…". Sesshomaru could never refuse little Rin anything when she set her heart to it (and the sweet child never demanded anything from him), so he agreed. In his heart-of hearts Sesshomaru was aghast that he would now have to baby-sit two frisky children instead of one. Then he saw Jaken lurking around and decided to foist that unenviable duty onto him. Jaken saw Sesshomaru smirk and with a sinking heart realised what his master intended to do. He started to splutter in protest… but to no avail. A glare from Sesshomaru concluded the so-called discussion. The strange party consisting of a powerful demon lord, a little toad demon, a two headed dragon, a fox-demon kid and a human child set off to a stream in the mountains for the fishing trip.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Sesshomaru's dilemma__

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

_I read that Matsurika means Jasmine in Japanese and is pronounced as "Ma-Ri-Ka"._

It was a beautiful day; bright and sunny. The mountain air was cool and balmy. Sesshomaru was satisfied that he couldn't detect any other hostile demonic presence in the surroundings. It was an ideal day for a picnic. The youngsters splashed and squealed in the little stream trying to nab fishes. Jaken pretended to be disinterested although he too soon joined the fun. Sesshomaru sat under a tree and closed his eyes, enjoying a much needed break.

It should have been a perfect day. But it was not to be so. Rin and Shippo were standing in the water which reached well above their ankles. All of a sudden there was a piercing scream from Rin. "Sesshomaru-samaaaaaaaaa something bit Rin!". Sesshomaru was in the water in a flash and grabbed a water serpent before it could disappear amongst the stones in the stream. He recognized the species with a sinking heart. His own poison claws dug into the reptile for causing Rin agony and in a fraction, the snake dissolved in a green puddle. Rin had been bitten by an anali snake, an extremely rare and the deadliest water snake known to humans. There was supposedly no antidote for its poison. The normally unflappable Sesshomaru was himself rattled though he did not show it.

"Sesshomaru-sama ….Rin is feeling faint..". Sesshomaru turned just in time to catch the falling girl. Rin was a pale shade of blue. Shippo started to cry "Sesshomaru-sama is Rin going to die? I don't want her to die". Sesshomaru sighed and without turning to look at Shippo, said "Kitsune, Don't be foolish. Stop crying and behave like man. This Sesshomaru is going to need your help in saving Rin; so stop behaving like a child." "Ye..ss…. Sesshomaru –sama" stammered Shippo who was startled to hear such a long sentence from Sesshomaru. He was shocked to hear that Sesshomaru would need his help! It was better than anything Inuyasha would ever have told him and dried up his tears effectively. Sesshomaru placed the now unconscious Rin gently on Ah-Un and hastened back to Kaedae's village.

Inuyasha and his gang watched anxiously as Kaedae examined Rin. Kaedae addressed Sesshomaru, "If Rin has been bitten by an anali, then I must say regretfully that I have no antidote for it. She is alive now, but it is well-known that a person bitten by an anali doesn't survive beyond midnight". Sesshomaru heard Kaedae confirm his worst fears with a sinking heart. As Rin had already been revived by Tenseiga once, there was no way he could use the sword to bring her back to life. Damn it! Sesshomaru would NEVER give up on Rin. The child meant more to him than he could ever bring himself to express. There had to be a way. He would find it.

Sesshomaru started to leave the hut. Inuyasha saw this and exclaimed "hey! Where are you going?"

"This Sesshomaru will find an antidote before midnight."

"Wait! Sesshomaru! I will come with you too." Kagome's jaw dropped on hearing Inuyasha volunteer to go with Sesshomaru.

"No! You stay here. That filthy Naraku may be dead, but now lesser demons hope to kill the miko of the Shikon-no tama in the misguided belief that it will increase their powers. If you come with me, this would be the perfect opportunity for them to attack. Moreover, you would only be in my way"

The group was stunned to hear of Sesshomaru's concern for one of their own.

"But where will you go?" growled Inuyasha. "This Sesshomaru doesn't know yet." "But this Sesshomaru will find a way" this was added silently.

Then Miroko spoke up "Sesshomaru-sama, when I was but a child, I remember my father talking about a healer who lived in the village of Aaiyouri in the Eastern lands who alone could treat an anali's bite. I don't know what manner of a healer she was, but I remember him saying that her technique was known to none. I can only hope that she is still alive or would have passed on her knowledge to a pupil."

On hearing this Sesshomaru turned without a word and was up in the sky in a flash. He was painfully aware that Rin didn't have much time left. And he, Sesshomaru, Lord of the West was actually feeling helpless and scared. Scared of losing a little human girl. He flew as fast as he could to the said province and located the village without much difficulty. Now he was confronted with another problem. How could he have a conversation with any of the villagers without them first screaming and running off in fear? Ah…humans could be really stupid! At last he managed to corner a man who had nowhere to be run. The cowering man fully expected to be eaten by the annoyed-looking demon when the demon spoke, "Human, do you know where I can find this healer who can cure the poison from an anali bite? Speak up or your life will be forfeit." The trembling man replied, "You muuust be speaking of……. Ll..lady Matsurika (I read its pronounced Ma-Ri-Ka). She is the only healer who can treat this poison. She lives in a cottage by the lake in the forest."

"This healer of yours, how long has she been here? Tell me what you know of her" Sesshomaru commanded.

"She has been here for a very long time, even before I was born. We are not encouraged to ask her anything except about our illnesses. So I know nothing else my lord. Pleaseeee don't kill me my lord.. pleaseee".

Before the hapless man could complete his pleas, Sesshomaru had taken to the skies again. So this Matsurika was the same healer Miroku's father had spoken about. Strange for a human to have lived so long. She would be very old indeed. These were Sesshomaru's thoughts as he flew into the forest.

In the forest, Sesshomaru saw the cottage by the lake. It was a rather large place in the centre of the forest surrounded by many plants which seemed to be medicinal. He wondered how an old woman could live in a dangerous place by herself. He went over to the cottage and knocked, but there was no answer. He couldn't detect any presence within the walls either. However, Sesshomaru could detect a faint scent in the air. Of jasmine.. So faint that no human could possibly detect. Puzzled, Sesshomaru followed the scent to its source. It led him to the lake. He looked in the waters and saw the source of this scent. And Sesshomaru froze.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Impatient Inuyasha

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

_**I thank my first ever reviewers Merky15 & CherBoi. The first response to your story gives you the courage to go ahead. Thank u guys!**_

Meanwhile, back in Kaedae's village Inuyasha sheathed the Tetusaiga after finishing off four ogres who had come to devour Kagome, thinking that it would give them special powers. His job done, Inuyasha hurried back to Kaedae's hut.

"Are they gone Inuyasha?" asked a soft voice that Inuyasha had come to love more than his own life.

"Keh. Hows Rin doing?"

"She's slipping away…. Kaeda and I made some potions to ease her pain. She was thrashing around and that would help the poison spread faster." Kagome had tears in her eyes. A distraught Sango was mopping the little girl's forehead.

"Where is that Sesshomaru? Why is he taking so long to find a healer? Darn it!" growled Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha … Sesshomaru will come. You are feeling so much despair; can you imagine how your brother must be feeling? And he is one who will never show his emotions for the world to see. Have faith … my dearest" said Kagome as she covered Inuyasha's clawed hand with her own.

Inuyasha carried her soft hand to his heart and held it there as he waited for his brother to return. He was lucky he had this beautiful woman and her love. Her love made life's blows easier to bear.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: A vision to behold

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

_I read that Matsurika means Jasmine in Japanese and is pronounced as "Ma-Ri-Ka"._

Sesshomaru froze. As the woman in the lake tossed her wet hair droplets of water scattered in the air like tiny shards of diamonds reflecting the rays of the rapidly disappearing sun. She stood in the water oblivious to his presence; her face turned away, her skin creamy perfection and raven-black hair with hidden blue-green streaks like the colour of a peacock's throat that cascaded in waves down her graceful back to end in curls that floated on the water. And she was not human.

Sesshomaru drew an angry breath to clear himself of these unworthy musings. This must be Matsurika and this definitely explains her longevity. Her scent denoted that she was not a pure demon. Yet Sesshomaru couldn't bring himself to call her a hanyou, because her human scent was so faint. He couldn't explain it, but her demonic strength was unlike anything he had ever seen in a hanyou before. Anyway he could wait until later to solve that mystery. Rin's safety was the only thing that mattered now.

The wind had been blowing away from Matsurika in Sesshomaru's direction, which was why she did not detect his scent as he approached the lake. A twig crunched below his booted foot and Matsurika turned her head sharply in the direction of the noise. Her eyes flew wide open in alarm as she saw a kami-like vision dressed in white standing at the bank of the lake, staring at her. Suddenly, she realised the state she was in and sank back into the water with a silent gasp. She closed her eyes, thinking she had imagined Him. But his handsome face with its stoic and penetrating molten gold eyes and strange markings were imprinted on her retina. As for his silky, long silver hair…. a girl would kill for such hair. She opened her eyes thinking the vision would have disappeared. And caught his scent. He was a full-blooded youkai.

Before she could say anything, Sesshomaru spoke up "Are you the healer Matsurika?"

Matsurika had managed to gather her scattered wits by then. She raised an eyebrow and replied "Why do you ask, demon? Surely you are in no need of my healing abilities."

Sesshomaru smirked. This one had guts. And she was regal. No one would dare speak to him in such a manner and certainly not when they were naked and half-submerged in water. "My ward as been bitten by an anali snake and this Sesshomaru was told that only the healer Matsurika could treat this poison."

"So you are the Inu youkai Sesshomaru. I have heard much about your exploits. Your ward must be a pretty weak demon if he is to succumb to anali poison"

"Rin is human and a girl".

"A human girl is the ward of the mighty Sesshomaru?" Matsurika thought that this did not go well with the accounts she had heard of the Sesshomaru who despised humans and hanyous alike. "Well, I cannot treat anyone by standing in the middle of a freezing lake."

Matsurika resisted the urge to roll her eyes when Sesshomaru did not take the hint to move away or atleast turn his back. Instead she gave him a cold stare that rivalled one of his and said in a tone that should have frozen the water in the lake "I have neither the wish for an audience nor the need for a hand-maiden".

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes and growled inwardly. No one gave him orders. And she was staring at him with green eyes the colour of forest pools speckled with licks of gold and the rims were dark brown. They were the strangest eyes he had seen… one could drown in them and still not learn anything about their owner. But he had to think of Rin. So he turned his back and waited for her to come to him.

Matsurika hurriedly stepped out of the lake and dressed. Then she walked upto the demon lord and invited him to her cottage. Sesshomaru turned and saw her properly; she was slender, petite and barely reached his shoulder. She was breathtakingly beautiful and her small pointed face was dominated by her golden-green eyes. As she walked past him, Sesshomaru could sense her unique scent; the smell of jasmines, not cloying or overwhelming but just a hint, like the whisper of a breeze on your skin.

Sesshomaru recounted the day's events on being prompted by Matsurika. The child was only around five. Matsurika could sense that the demon lord genuinely cared about the child but refrained from commenting; she could see that Sesshomaru would never wear his heart on his sleeve.

"I will come with you my lord. I have never denied treatment to those who seek my help. If the girl was bitten early this afternoon, we must hurry. The poison will claim her life in a very short time." Matsurika gathered the necessary herbs as she spoke to Sesshomaru.

"Hn. You will fly with this Sesshomaru".

Matsurika gasped at the word"fly". Before she could react, Sesshomaru had his left arm around her waist and held her close to his body as he took to the skies.

Sesshomaru would have smirked if he were not so worried about Rin. He could smell her fear and her fingers would definitely claw their way to his shoulder bones by the time they reached the village, such was her grip. Shifting her slightly within his arms, Sesshomaru looked into Matsurika's eyes and said "You will not fall." Matsurika gazed into the golden eyes above her and suddenly felt calm. She was safe. This demon would never let her fall. And she relaxed into him.

_Note:_

_I realise that Kagome hitched a ride with Sesshomaru back inside Naraku's body by clinging onto his mokomoko. Well, Kags is "frequent flyer" used to leaping around on Inuyasha's back. But Matsurika is a first time flyer… we can't have her dangling onto our hero's mokomoko and screaming bloody murder, can we?_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Rin lives…

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**Merky 15 thank you so much once again for the review. **_

_Sorry about the delay in updates…. Have to finish a couple of papers, so distracted by that work!_

Sesshomaru set Matsurika down upon reaching the village. Kagome and Inuyasha were quite surprised to see Sesshomaru bring a beautiful maiden who they could sense was a half-demoness. Before they could say anything, Sesshomaru said "This is the healer Matsurika."

Without any preliminaries, Kagome rushed forward and taking Matsurika's hand in her own said, "We are so glad you are here. Please come this way.."

Inside the hut Matsurika saw her little patient. Rin's skin was cold and a shade of deep blue and her breathing was quite shallow. Matsurika quickly drew some herbs from her satchel and made a paste of them. She applied them to Rin's forehead. Then Matsurika held her hands over Rin's heart, palms facing down. A light began to emanate from her palms. Kagome gasped on seeing the strange glow…. it was half blue and the other half was pinkish…. The glow of a miko's powers! This demoness-healer here possessed miko powers in addition to her demonic powers! The others too sensed this but did not comment. Now was not the time to do so. Matsurika moved her palms over Rin's body and slowly the blue began to ebb away from the little girl's body. Her body was soon bathed in sweat and her breathing became regular. Seeing this, Kagome and Sango wept silently while Shippo was more vocal. Inuyasha refrained from commenting for he too was relieved that Rin was safe.

Kagome turned to Sesshomaru and was astonished to see a play of emotions on his face. Sesshomaru was more than overjoyed that the little human whom he had come to consider almost as his own offspring was now saved. He knelt beside Rin and gently stroked her face.

"She will remain asleep for some more time. Please don't awaken her, let her sleep off the effect of the herbs" said Matsurika.

Sesshomaru turned to face her; by now his usual stoic expression was in place. "This Sesshomaru is indebted to you, healer".

Matsurika was exhausted; healing Rin had consumed a lot of energy for the girl was perilously close to death. She sagged against the wall of the hut. Sango saw this and asked her "Would you like some tea or anything else? You look like you could use one". Matsurika smiled weakly and thanked Sango.

Kagome said "Why don't we all go outside where it is cooler? I am sure Rin will be ok now, without us all crowding around her."

The group assembled outside in the moonlight. Miroku built a small fire and Sango brought Matsurika some tea. Formal introductions were completed. Kagome couldn't keep silent any longer and asked Matsurika "I don't wish to sound rude Matsurika, but I am curious. I am sure I saw you yielding miko powers; how is this?".

Miroku added "It's the first time I have seen such powerful reishi and youkai melded in perfect harmony. How is it possible?"

It was something Sesshomaru had been itching to ask as well, but now that others had done that service for him, he merely observed with deceptive casualness.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The tale of Matsurika

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha". I am not Japanese, I have tried to use a few Japanese terms to try and preserve the flavour of the story. So if there are any mistakes, please forgive me and do point out the necessary corrections with the right meaning.**_

Matsurika had been dreading these questions ever since she agreed to help Lord Sesshomaru. It was one thing to intimidate curious humans, but the daiyoukai was a different cup of tea altogether. Now his strange friends were asking her the questions she had tried to avoid for as long as she could remember. But strangely enough, she did not feel awkward or irritated by their curiosity. She found herself warming to the group who obviously cared about each other. Even Sesshomaru-sama for all his aloofness cared about his ward and he actually trusted this group, if he were to leave the girl in their care.

Matsurika heaved a sigh and began her tale "It's a rather long story; one I have never told anyone before. My mother was the daughter of the demon Hirokazu, a powerful healer of the Isha demon tribe who would go out of his way to help those in need and Chihiro the miko of the shrine of the Heiwa no tani village. The isha demons are gentle and have no stomach for violence or warfare. Although the villagers were aghast that their shrine miko had mated with a demon, they soon saw that the demon was a gentle being and a wonderful healer and welcomed him to their midst. My mother Amami, was thus a hanyou with healing abilities but she did not inherit her mother's miko powers.

When my mother was 16, she met Lord Mitsuo, the heir to the Honoo fire demon tribe. The fire demons are a very powerful and rather dangerous group of demons. They detest humans and hanyous with a vengeance. Lord Mitsuo seduced Amami but would not officially mate with her, because she was just a hanyou. He was furious that he let himself stoop to being with a hanyou and left her soon. A devastated Amami soon found that she was pregnant. She was aghast and panicked. If the fire demons found out that she was expecting a fire demon half-breed, then they would kill her offspring and destroy her too.

A desperate Amami turned to Shirou, a young man in the village who had secretly adored her since childhood and explained her predicament to him. Shirou asked to marry him; then everyone would believe that the baby was his. A grateful Amami agreed to the plan. When I was born, my eyes and hair told the world that I was not Shirou's offspring. You see, fire demons have golden markings in their eyes like you see in mine and their hair has hues of blue and green in them. But no one dared ridicule my hanyou mother openly for she was their healer. Two years later, my mother bore Shirou's child, a boy. Shirou was never unkind to me, but neither was he an affectionate parent, for I always a demon's offspring in his eyes. My mother saw Lord Mitsuo, who had so callously discarded her, in me and could never bring herself to openly love me. I never really understood the reason for their withdrawn behaviour until much later, for my mother never told me her secret. The only person who was non-judgemental about me was my little brother. He loved me like I was the best thing in the world and he was the light of my life.

Things were fine initially. By the time I was 10, I started to become aware of my powers. I had the healing abilities inherited from my Isha demon grandfather and the ability to yield and control fire like a fire demon. Most surprising was that I had also inherited the miko powers of my grandmother which was lost on my mother. When my brother was attacked by a bear demon in the forest where we were gathering firewood, I felt a surge of power through me and ended up purifying the demon. My mother who saw this was alarmed. She did not want news of my powers to reach the fire demons and told me never to yield my fire powers or miko powers again. Then when I turned 14, fate played a cruel hand on my family.

Lord Mitsuo had been killed in a battle and the fire demon tribe was looking to select its next chief. The fire demons have a holy fire burning in their castle which can be handled only by the true heir to the throne. The true heir has to be a blood-offspring of the previous leader. Only in the absence of such an heir, would the holy fire permit another worthy demon to claim the throne. Lord Mitsuo had not mated; he was rather young when he was killed. So the tribe chose another demon by the name Songatsku to inherit the throne. When Songatsku staked his claim, the holy fire rejected it. The puzzled fire demons turned to their oracle who consulted the holy fire. The holy fire then showed my image in its flames and announced that I was the true heir. Only after my death could any one claim the Fire throne. You can imagine the sort of furore that announcement would have caused among the hanyou/human hating demons. They would never permit a hanyou to be their leader, even if she was technically only quarter human.

It was a rather calm and moon-lit night like tonight. The whole village was slumbering peacefully. Suddenly I woke up….I felt some strange energy; it was very powerful and was not from a single being. Now I realise that I had actually felt the combined auras of 20 or more fire demons, but at that time I had no idea what I was experiencing. It was approaching us very fast. I woke up my mother. She sensed the presence and quickly woke up my step-father and my brother. She told me to take my brother and hide in the forest. Before we could even step-out of the hut, the whole village was engulfed in flames cutting off any escape routes. A tall and very strong demon, who I would later learn was Songatsku, approached my family snarling. His eyes which were so much like mine were now literally alive with leaping flames. I was terrified and hugged my whimpering brother. I had to be brave for his sake. My mother stepped in front of us. Although she was a half-demon, my mother possessed only the healing capacities of the …demons. Songatsku threw a fire-ball at her and in front of our eyes my mother was burned to a cinder. But his real target was me. I screamed at my brother to run and hide, but the little fellow thought he could fight off the demon about to attack his sister. When Songatsku was done with him, I couldn't even trace his ashes.

By then I was screaming in pain and rage. I was only 14, but sorrow and anger know no age. I was surrounded by the stench of death and burning flesh. I felt something happen to me… I could feel power swirling inside me, howling like a beast to be released. I was terrified, but my desire for revenge and also a sense of self-preservation were much stronger than my childish fears. I let go. For the first time, I felt the demonic and miko powers in me rise simultaneously. They ripped through me tearing me from the inside out as they fought for supremacy over each other. Then suddenly they blended like two branches of a river and radiated from my being in waves. Every demon surrounding me was caught in the flames and purified. The power continued to radiate from me. I felt that it would consume me too as I collapsed on the ground. I would have welcomed death that night with open arms after witnessing my family's slaughter. Then slowly the howling beast in me quietened and was then silent. I looked around and saw that there was no one left. The entire village had been massacred. Everything, everyone I knew in life was gone…dead….burnt away. But most of all I lost my brother, the only person who ever truly loved me.

I ran. I fled. I tried to outrun the pain, the hurt, the helplessness. I don't know where I went but I ran. It was futile. I couldn't shut my eyes without hearing their screams or seeing the burning flames. The fire demons too had not given up their pursuit. They tried to trace me and kill me at every opportunity. But somehow I managed to defeat them with my fledgling powers. I decided that I would not let them make me run all my life. I tried to master and understand my powers. It was very difficult at first with no one to guide me, but I managed to get a grip on what I had to do.

Still I did not understand why I was being pursued by the fire demons. When I was 16, I managed to capture one of the fire demons who were pursuing me. I managed to "persuade" him to talk and learnt the secrets surrounding my birth. At first I found it hard to believe, and then soon things began to make sense. My powers, my parents' attitude towards me…all these began to make sense.

That day I resolved that I would stay away from the fire demons as much as I could… the healer-demon in me abhorred the sort of violence I had to resort to in their presence. I would learn to completely control my powers. I would use the healing powers to help those in need and keep my destructive powers in check unless their use was warranted. So I began my training and travelled. I never stayed in a place for too long and served more as a travelling healer. I had been travelling for almost 150 years when I reached the forest near the Aaiyouri village. It was so remote and peaceful and I felt the need to finally settle down in a place. So I have been living there for 100 years now as a healer. My efforts to throw the fire demons off my trail must have paid off, for they haven't bothered me since I settled there. The last I heard, a demon named Aikotsu was their unofficial leader. I have discouraged humans from trying to get close to me or be curious about me to maintain my secrecy. Until today, I have never left the Aaiyouri forest."

As Matsurika concluded her tale she was staring at the moon and the stoic expression on her face would have rivalled Sesshomaru's any day.

Inuyasha stared at the demoness… he thought his life had been hard. Keh, it was cakewalk compared to what this girl had been through. He had known love. His parents had loved and wanted him, although he never got to see his father. He had people who loved him; first Kikiyo and now Kagome. The others in the group too loved him. Kagome and Sango were misty eyed and Miroku was lost in contemplation. Sesshomaru spoke up "Have you never thought to challenge the fire demons for your rightful place on the Fire throne?"

Matsurika quietly looked at Sesshomaru for a long moment before replying with a faint smile "It is not worth it. That throne has so much hatred in it; it has taken away everything that mattered to me. No power is worth it, if you can't have love."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Strange friendships

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

Matsurika stayed with the group till the next evening waiting for Rin to wake up. She found herself enjoying their company, especially that of the girls. Never having had friends for so long, their chatter and easy banter made her ache to be a part of such a group. By that evening the three girls had become fast friends. Even though Sesshomaru never spoke much, Matsurika was always aware of him.

When Rin finally woke up Matsurika was applying herbal paste to her bite mark. "Who are you?" asked a little sleepy voice.

"This lady here is the healer Matsurika, who saved Rin after she was bitten by a snake" explained Sesshomaru.

"Sesshomaru-sama!" exclaimed Rin and turned to look at Matsurika critically. "You are very pretty", came her observation; "thank you pretty lady" and rewarded Matsurika with a toothy grin. Matsurika was never used to receiving compliments regarding her person from anyone let alone a little child. She was slightly flustered and replied "you be a good girl and stay away from snakes in the future." "Ok" came Rin's reply accompanied by her trademark grin.

When Matsurika turned she found Sesshomaru observing her with an unreadable expression in his eyes. "Is anything wrong my lord?" Without a reply Sesshomaru turned away. Matsurika narrowed her eyes and pushed down her flaring temper…dammit! That inu-youkai seemed to bring out the worst in her.

It was soon time for Matsurika to leave. Inuyasha and Miroku exchanged bland looks watching the girls say their goodbyes as if they were parting from life-long friend. Kagome and Sango made Matsurika promise that she would visit them soon. Matsurika in turn invited the girls to her forest dwelling. All the while Sesshomaru stood observing the scene with a bored look on his face.

Seeing Sesshomaru waiting for her, Matsurika said "Now that there is no need for hurry, I would rather travel by land back to my village. Thank you Sesshomaru-sama for offering to take me back, but I can go on my own without any trouble." The truth was that Matsurika was terrified of flying again and she was also a little intimidated by the demon lord though she would cut off an arm before admitting to it!

Sesshomaru merely smirked and asked "Why?"

Matsurika saw the smirk and it irked her to no end. "I dislike being hauled up like a bale of rice under your arm. That's why!"

The others watched this exchange open-mouthed.

"Hn". Before Matsurika could utter kami, she found herself cradled in Sesshomaru's arms. His left arm was around her waist and his right under her knees, holding her close to his armoured chest several feet above the ground. A speechless Matsurika merely gulped. "This Sesshomaru hopes that the healer doesn't feel like a bale of rice now." Before she could think of a befitting retort, Matsurika found herself high in the skies, flying with the over-bearing demon. She peeked down and when she saw the fast-disappearing ground, she yelped and hid her face against Sesshomaru's shoulder. Above her, Sesshomaru smiled. He truly enjoyed riling this woman.

Watching this tableau, Miroku grinned to himself. His days as the monk with the "wandering hand" may be over, but he could sense that something was brewing here. Things were going to get interesting around the daiyoukai lord.

Back in the forest, Sesshomaru gently lowered Matsurika onto the ground just outside her house. Matsurika looked up at Sesshomaru and whispered thank you. Sesshomaru looked at her for a long moment and said "As I said healer, this Sesshomaru is indebted to you". Then he turned to leave. He stopped as he heard her voice say "Matsurika".

"What?"

"My name is Matsurika, my lord. Not healer" came the reply.

"Hn".

Matsurika watched as Sesshomaru disappeared into the forest. Only then did she release the breath she did not realise she had been holding. Sesshomaru unsettled her like no other and she was not sure she liked the feeling. She would have to be careful around him.

Sesshomaru stopped by the lake where he had first seen Matsurika. He tried to understand why he was behaving in an uncharacteristic fashion around her. But her tale and her extraordinary courage was making him curious about her. That's it! The answer was simple - He was curious. There had really been nothing in the past few hundred years to arouse his curiosity. That was why he was behaving in this manner. Ah! He had his answer. This Sesshomaru was merely curious about Matsurika.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Strange thoughts

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**Thank you Nyght elf for your review. I was starting to think no one liked my story. You saved me!**_

His scent was something you could get addicted to….something lemony with a hint of mint and something spicy. She had been almost tempted to taste his skin when her face had been hidden at the crook of his neck. The wind had blown his hair across her face and it had felt like a swathe of heavy silk. And the feel of his strong arms around her….. now that was something; for the first time in her life she could remember feeling safe and protected.

Dangerous thoughts. Wickedly dangerous thoughts.

Thoughts that made her heart pound in her chest. And that made her think about the feel of his hard armour-covered chest against her…. No! no! no! She wouldn't go there. By the kamis! This was becoming unbearable. Matsurika was pounding herbs and cursing the daiyoukai who was the source of all her unbecoming thoughts. The thoughts that had caused her to mess up her proportions for the fourth time in a row. Exasperated, Matsurika dropped her pestle and thought "Girl, this is what you get for being a virgin for over 200 years; you go and make a fool of yourself over the first male specimen you actually notice". No, this was not true. Matsurika could never bring herself to be intimate with just any male to scratch an itch nor had she been attracted to any male – demon or human during all these years. And Lord Sesshomaru was not just any male specimen. He was the ultimate specimen.

Heaving a sigh, Matsurika rose from her position on the floor and looked up into the eyes of the object of her dreams. She gaped. She turned beet-red; she had been so caught-up in her thoughts that she hadn't heard or sensed his arrival. Oh! This was so embarrassing. And if he were to read her thoughts…

"Ses…Sesshomaru-sama what are you doing here?" asked Matsurika after she managed to gather her scattered wits.

"Healer, whatever has you occupied that you did not even realise that this Sesshomaru had entered your dwelling? Have you no regard for your safety or are your senses worse than that of a human?"

"I…..I w..was ahem… lost in thought."

"Hn. Pathetic excuse. Bear demons have been sighted near the outskirts of this forest and this Sesshomaru has been informed that those lowly demons are in league with the fire demons. They could be scouting the area for you.

The other day when this Sesshomaru took you to Rin, we did not bother to mask our auras. They could have picked up your scent."

Matsurika heard this news with a sinking heart. Again she would have to be on the run. But she couldn't express her fears to anyone, certainly not this demon lord who despised weakness.

"Thank you my lord, for this information. I will be prepared for any eventuality."

Sesshomaru stared hard at the cool, composed female standing in front of him. "Hn." Without another word Sesshomaru left the house and disappeared into the forest.

Matsurika sank to her knees. It was going to start all over again. The running, the hiding and the inevitable fighting. She was so weary. Would she never know freedom?

_Note: My new kitten's tail is just like Sesshu's mokomoko and I have named him Fluffy! I guess Sessh wouldn't be too happy with this news _;-)

_Guys.. please review if you like or hate the story so far. I really need to know what you think. _


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Saved by an angel

_**I don't own Inuyasha or any other character from the manga "Inuyasha".**_

_**Nyght elf, you are amazing! I dedicate this chapter to you…thank you so much!**_

Things were happening faster than she expected. Matsurika was throwing a few things into her satchel to carry with her. She planned to leave the forest and get as far away from the village as possible. She would not be responsible for another carnage in her name. Then she found her dwelling surrounded by demonic forces. The time for battle had come.

Things were far worse than Matsurika expected. The fire demons had brought hordes of other demons – bear demons, bat demons and other lesser demons. Their strategy was to use their minions as cover while they attacked her. She was surrounded on all sides. While the other demons fought her on land, bat demons attacked her from the skies. Her formidable powers destroyed those around her, but there was no way she could concentrate on all sides at the same time.

A huge ball made of her entwined energies shot off from her hand into the sky, burning and purifying the wretched bats. At the same time, she was attacked by the demons on the ground. While she fended the new attacks, a fire demon managed to sneak under her guard. Matsurika sensed the intruder and started to turn. But she was too late!

A bolt of fire struck her back and the searing pain knocked her to the ground. With increasing horror she watched the fire demon advance with his sword drawn. The demon raised his blade and brought it down on Matsurika. There was no escape. But she wouldn't close her eyes. She wouldn't give the demon the satisfaction of watching her cringe even in death.

Like a bolt from the blue, a whip of green light shot out of nowhere. It coiled around the fire demon's arm and ripped it from its body. The howling demon slid to his knees and saw Sesshomaru stand before him, still as a statue with only his fiery eyes betraying any sign of emotion. The glowing amber eyes were the last thing the demon saw before poison claws ripped through his body.

Matsurika couldn't believe that she had been saved. For a moment she forgot about the battle surrounding her. Her eyes drank in the sight of Sesshomaru standing over her like an avenging angel, protecting her. He was a magnificent sight, especially to the lost princess who had never known a knight in shining armour until this very moment.

While Matsurika struggled to recover from being knocked-down, Sesshomaru kept her from harm with his poison whip and claws. A casual observer would have seen only a blur of green light and slashes tearing through the demon army; such was his speed and dexterity that forced the lesser demons back. Out of the corner of his eye Sesshomaru saw that Matsurika had recovered and was starting to fight by his side. Without a word Sesshomaru wrapped an arm around Matsurika's waist and leapt high up into the air where they remained airborne on his youkai cloud. When they were above the level of the bat demons, Sesshomaru unsheathed Bakusaiga. He swung the sword in a mighty arc amongst the bat demons with a cry "Bakusaiga…"

The ensuing destruction was an eye-opener for Matsurika. The dying bat demons fell upon the demons below and their flesh too was consumed by the destruction havocked by Bakusaiga. With a single swing of his blade, the great daiyoukai had brought the horde of demon assassins to its knees. The pitifully small number of survivors made themselves scarce; scattering like dry leaves in the wind.

Never had Matsurika imagined a power such as this. She trembled in awe. But she realised that Sesshomaru might think of her state as weakness and forced herself to be calm as she said with deceptive casualness "This seems to be turning into a habit my lord".

"And what may you be referring to?"

"This habit of yours….hauling me about like a bale of rice.."

Matsurika sneaked up a glance at Sesshomaru. To her utter amazement she realised that his eyes were actually twinkling and the corners of his mouth were upturned….in a smile; albeit a small one, but still a smile. She found herself staring at that wondrous sight with open-mouthed fascination. Then he said "Perhaps we should set that right." Saying so, he swung her up so that she was once again cradled in Sesshomaru's arms as she had been when he had brought her back after saving Rin.

Matsurika gasped and realised something. She was falling in love. No…she HAD fallen irrevocably in love with Sesshomaru. Deeply in love with a demon who she knew would never reciprocate her feelings ever. This secret of hers would always remain in her heart. She would never embarrass him with any declaration of her feelings.

She shut her eyes as Sesshomaru carried her off somewhere, she didn't care where as long as it meant that she could know the security of his arms for a little while longer. Just a little while longer.


End file.
